Monthly Archives: January 2016

Surface Preparation Before Applying Industrial Floor Coating

If you want your industrial floor professionally restored, the processes needs to be comprehensive so that your floors will be robust and in top condition for many years in the future. Carrying out surface preparation before applying industrial floor coating is regarded as the most crucial stage of resinous flooring applications, and if this is not done correctly and to professional standards, it could result in you suffering a costly, time consuming repair procedure.

In order to make your floors look the best they can be, surface preparation is carried out using grinding, shot blasting and scarifying techniques. For example, in the case of old concrete, the first job is ensuring that surfaces are structurally sound before the resinous installation. At this stage, grinding, shot blasting, sandblasting, and rough sanding are utilized to take away scale, loose concrete, and existing paint. If possible, a stripper might be employed to take off excessive sealer or paint build-up. The mechanical preparation of structurally sound concrete is done to eliminate all forms of contamination, and the top process for a first-class bonding profile is vacuum shot blasting.

Prior to the application of any Epoxy Flooring System products, your industrial floor surface has to be inspected for signs of vapor transmission. In the case of new concrete, your floor should be dry and well cured before it is coated, unless green concrete primer is utilized, the cure needs to last for at least 28 days. All laitance, grease, oil, or other unwanted material is removed, and steam cleaning is carried out using a heavy de-greaser. Mechanical methods such as grinding, scarification, and vacuum blasting, are employed to take away laitance and foreign material. When concrete is new, it can be prepared mechanically through grinding, scarifying, sand blasting, or vacuum shot-blasting, and it can also be acid etched.

De-greasing compounds or solvents are utilized to take away grease, oil, and other foreign materials, and then mechanical abrasion, sandblasting, or sanding is done to remove all rust and scaling.

Industrial floor buffers make it easy to remove skid marks, dust and restore the pristine shine of your floor. Whether in a hallway or out on the industrial floor, the buffer can make maintaining your facility much easier than ever before. However, it isn’t as simple as a vacuum. You don’t just plug it in and go. There are important steps you need to follow to ensure you not only remain safe while using it, but avoid costly issues with the flooring as well.

Inspect the Scrub Brush/Polishing Pad

If you are removing thick grime from the floor, you’ll need a scrub brush. If you are restoring a dusty floor to a pristine shine you’ll need a polishing pad. Either way, you need to inspect what is coming in contact with the flooring. If the polishing pad appears extremely used and soiled you’ll need to replace it. Dirty polishing pads may scratch your floor and damage the epoxy. The scrub brush can withstand a bit more use, but if the bristles are damaged and the brush corroded, you also need to replace it.

Start in a Corner

Some industrial floor buffers are electric based and work off of a charge while others must connect to a power outlet. More likely than not, as an industrial device, it works off of a charge. Regardless of what you have, start in a corner of the room furthest from the entrance. You don’t want to buffer yourself into a corner. If you walk directly over an area that has just been buffed you risk not only scuffing it back up but also denting the surface.

Applying the Polishing Cream

Like waxing a fine car, you’ll need a polishing cream for the floor. You have two different options for how to use the cream. You can either apply it directly to the pad or onto the floor. If the pad is new, it can hold a considerable amount, so applying it to the pad may work to your advantage. However, if you have used the pad a few times already, applying it to the floor may be best. Just don’t use too much polishing cream, otherwise you run the risk of making the floor too slippery.

Overlap

When running the buffer, move laterally through the room and make sure to overlap your previously buffered area by a third in order to keep everything even.